09/17/2026
~A Touch of Utah~
As a photographer, I’m always looking for the way light, shape, and perspective come together—and this scene demanded my attention. The formations reminded me of what I’d find in Utah, particularly the sculpted arches and towering walls around Arches and Canyonlands National Parks.
But instead of standing beneath a dry desert sky, I was standing on an Oregon beach with the rhythmic hum of Pacific waves crashing against the shore.
I began moving along the course sand, searching for the composition. From one angle, the arch framed the horizon. From another, the pinnacles became the dominant subject. I watched the light shift across the rock, waiting for the moment when shadow and texture gave the formations and the depth I wanted.
The camera came out, and I started working the scene.
What made it special wasn’t simply the resemblance to the Southwest. It was the combination of elements rarely found together in a single photograph—sculpted stone, sweeping sand, and the raw movement of the Pacific. Not Utah, not Arizona, but the Oregon Coast.
Some photographs are planned. Others are discoveries. This one was both—and long after I left the beach, I knew I’d return to enjoy a “piece of Utah” right in my backyard.
That is what keeps me exploring the coast. Even after years of photographing it, there are still places that make me want to stop and reach for my camera.
